mechanical instrument

British  

noun

1. a musical instrument, such as a barrel organ or music box, that plays a preselected piece of music by mechanical means

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Example Sentences

If the problem is that a bureaucratic system is impersonal, unaccountable, creepy, and has a flawed or biased decision criteria, then why fetishize and render mysterious the mere mechanical instrument of the system’s will?

From Slate • May 20, 2015

But what makes the clock at 346 Broadway extraordinary is that it is, to this day, a purely mechanical instrument, one that must be wound every week.

From New York Times • Nov. 12, 2014

Do become a creature instead of a mechanical instrument . . . start at the very beginning and be a perfect baby .

From Time Magazine Archive

Fernando Valenti has a lyrical touch for his mechanical instrument and just the blithe spirit to go with it.

From Time Magazine Archive

In his twenties now, Horace made a mechanical instrument that helped his father study how far a stone moved vertically.

From "Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith" by Deborah Heiligman